From the land of the broken
by Skovko
Summary: Dean and Brooklyn had been close, and he had hoped she would leave Corey for him. Then Corey trapped her in a position she never wanted to be in. Dean hasn't seen her for a while. Now Corey has brought her back on the road, and she's still the woman Dean fell in love with, but there's so much more going on now than their feelings for each other.
1. I'm not alright

Dean watched as Corey walked in with Brooklyn next to him. He had known, like everyone else, that Corey would bring her around this Sunday, but seeing her in person made him suddenly not feel ready for it.

She still looked the same but with a few differences. Her medium brown hair had gotten a few strands of grey in it, and her ice blue eyes that once shone bright now looked empty. It made sense with the stress she had been through. Stress caused by the pram Corey was pushing in front of him.

They now had a child together. Dean would never understand how that happened. He knew Brooklyn never wanted kids. She was open about that to everyone. And suddenly she stopped wrestling because she was pregnant. Four months to be exact. No one had known. She had been wrestling pregnant because she hadn't known herself.

"What a prince!" Brie cooed at the kid. "You sure can't run from being the father, Corey. He looks exactly like you."  
"My boy," Corey beamed proudly.

Kids had zero interest to Dean, but he still made his way over to take a look. Sure, that was Corey's spitting image. The kid looked nothing like Brooklyn. He looked away from the kid and up at her.

"Hi," he said. "How are you doing?"

She shrugged in return. This was not the Brooklyn he remembered. She had been happy back then. They had flirted like crazy, and Dean had thought she might end up leaving Corey. If that had happened, he would have been there in a heartbeat to ask her out. And then the kid happened. He was born six weeks ago, and Corey was now showing off his family.

"What's his name?" Brie asked.  
"We've had a bit of issue with that," Corey looked at Brooklyn. "But I think we settled on Chiles. That means 'the first born child'. He'll be the first of many. Right, honey?"  
"You can name him whatever you want. He's your kid," Brooklyn said.

An awkward silence fell, and Corey started chuckling.

"He's our kid, and his name is Chiles," he said. "Oh, I think he's hungry. Do you wanna feed him, honey?"  
"No, you do that. I have to pee," Brooklyn said.

She walked away before he could argue with that decision.

"Sorry, she's been really sad lately. I think she's lonely at home. I was hoping bringing her here would cheer her up," he excused her behavior.

Dean shook his head to himself and went after her. No one thought twice about him walking away too. He was always hard to read to everyone, and he preferred it that way. The only two people that ever got to see his true form 100% within WWE were Roman and Brooklyn. He spotted her further ahead. She had just passed the toilets. He had a feeling she had been using the pee card as an excuse to get away.

"Brooklyn!" He ran up to her. "Are you alright?"  
"No," she answered honestly.  
"Shit," he looked around. "Come here."

He pulled her to an emergency exit and outside where they could talk in peace. She wrapped her arms around him and leaned her cheek on his chest. He held her close, waiting for her to cry or yell, but nothing came. She just stood there dead silent.

"Talk to me, darling," he said.  
"I'm not happy," she said.  
"I kinda figured," he said.  
"I never wanted this," she said.  
"Never wanted what?" He asked.  
"This. Corey. The kid. Any of it," she answered.  
"Brooklyn, I..." He started.

The emergency door opened, and Baron stepped outside. Of course it had to be Corey's best friend catching them out there hugging each other. Not that anything had been going on, but it could look very wrong to someone else.

"I didn't think anyone was out here," Baron looked at Brooklyn. "Where's Corey?"  
"Inside," she shrugged.  
"And Chiles?" He asked.  
"Who?" She asked.  
"Your son!" He stared at her.  
"Oh, right, Corey named him. I don't know much about kids, but I don't think he's able to walk yet, so he's probably in there with Corey," she said.  
"No need to be pissy about it," he said.

She tapped Dean's chest with her flat hand and gave him a weak smile.

"Thanks for the talk. It was good seeing you again. I missed you," she said.  
"I missed you too," he said.

He didn't give a fuck that Baron was there. Everyone knew back then that he and Brooklyn had a close friendship, and everyone knew that Corey had hated it. Dean couldn't care less what Corey thought.

"I still have the same number," she said.

She left those words hanging, and walked back inside. Baron crossed his arms and stared at Dean.

"What?" Dean asked.  
"She's off the market," Baron answered.  
"I know that," Dean said.  
"Then act like it," Baron said.  
"She needed a friend!" Dean sneered. "And I'm her fucking friend whether Corey likes it or not!"


	2. I don't love him

Corey wasn't working on Sundays, so they had been sitting back watching the house show. Brooklyn had enjoyed watching Dean wrestling. He was feuding with EC3. It didn't matter who he went against. He was pure magic inside the ring.

After the show they had gone straight back to the hotel. Corey was in the shower while she was supposed to look after the kid. She glanced at the sleeping kid, wondering what she was supposed to feel. Her phone started ringing, and for the first time in a long time she smiled when she saw Dean's name on the screen.

"Dean," she answered. "You looked great tonight."  
"Thanks, darling," he chuckled. "What are you up to?"  
"Not much. What about you?" She asked.  
"I'm sitting downstairs in the bar with a glass of whiskey, and I'm feeling nostalgic. Remember all those times you'd leave Corey mad in your room to go have a drink with me? I miss those times," he said.  
"Me too," she said. "Is there room for one more at your table?"  
"I'll order your favorite whiskey," he chuckled.

She hung up and stared at the kid. He was still sleeping. Corey was singing in a false tune from the shower. She walked over and opened the door.

"I'm heading out," she said.  
"What?" He asked.  
"I'm going out for a bit," she said.  
"Wait, what? With who? Where are you going?" He raised his voice.

He pulled the curtain aside, but she was already gone. He ran back into the room naked, just to hear the click from the door behind her. He would have gotten in some clothes fast and chased her for some answers if it hadn't been for Chiles needing him to stay in the room.

"Hi darling," Dean smiled when she joined him. "Your drink."  
"Thanks," she took a swig. "Shit, that's good."

He reached across the table and took her hand. His blue eyes settled on hers.

"Talk to me," he said.  
"I don't love him," she said.  
"I know that. You didn't back then either, did you?" He asked.  
"Not Corey. The kid. I don't love the kid," she said. "I don't hate him either. I look at him, and I feel nothing. He's not mine. He's Corey's. I don't want him. I never wanted him."  
"I know," he sighed.  
"I'm a horrible person," she said.  
"No, you're not. You were always outspoken about not wanting kids," he said. "So what happened?"

Her hand shook a bit as she raised the glass and emptied her drink.

"I didn't know until it was too late to get an abortion. And believe me, I would have gotten it. We got in a huge fight about it because I wanted to give the kid up for adoption once it arrived, and Corey actually admitted to poking holes in the condoms to get me pregnant against my will," she said.  
"That's fucked up!" Dean's jaw dropped.  
"He trapped me, and now I'm stuck," she said. "I don't raise the kid. I neglect him, Dean. He cries, and sure, I'll comfort him, feed him and change him, but that's it. I don't talk to him. And when I finally look at him, I feel nothing. I'm a horrible person."  
"No, you're you. This shows that you were always right, and that you knew what you wanted and didn't want in life," he said. "Corey fucked up your life."  
"I was gonna leave him," she said.

She ran her thumb over Dean's hand, and kept her eyes locked with his.

"I was gonna leave him because of you," she said. "I know you probably only flirted with me to make me feel better, but it helped me to realize that I couldn't stay. I was gonna leave him. I had it all planned out. I had found a house in Vegas, in your neighborhood actually, and I was gonna buy it and leave him. I didn't care that you were only my friend. I was never gonna tell you about my feelings, but what does it matter now?"  
"I was in love with you too," he smiled warmly. "I still am."  
"I wanna tell you something. Something that no one knows. Can we go to your room?" She asked.  
"Of course," he answered.

Five minutes later they were in his room. He sat down on the bed while she kept standing on the floor. She seemed nervous when she finally lifted her tee to show her scar.

"He was turned the wrong way, so they had to cut him out. I hate that scar, and yet I feel lucky. Nothing got torn downstairs. I can have sex without problems," she said.  
"Yeah?" He smirked.  
"I haven't though. I haven't had sex since the day I found out I was pregnant. Corey disgusts me now," she said.  
"How have you managed to work your way around that?" He said.  
"I told him that we couldn't have sex until my period starts again. He doesn't know that'll never happen," she said.

He tilted his head to the side, not understanding what she meant by that.

"This is what I wanted to tell you. Something went wrong inside me, and they had to do surgery on me after they removed the kid. The doctor said they had to put me under. I told him to let me die. I fucking begged him to let me die. I don't know exactly what went wrong, and I don't care. When I woke up, I was told they had to remove my ovaries. They all looked so sad, and I started laughing like a crazy person. I can't ever get pregnant again, and I won't ever have periods again. I'm fucking happy about it," she said.

She hadn't realized she had started smiling while telling him that. He smiled back at her.

"And Corey doesn't know?" He asked.  
"No," she let out a little laugh. "It all happened a Monday when he was away for RAW. I never told him because he would have wanted to sue the doctors for taking away my ability to have anymore children. He doesn't have a say in what goes on with my body. Something he didn't understand last year when he messed me up, and put that thing inside me."  
"Darling, come here," he said.

He waved her over to the bed, and she went to stand in front of him. He placed his hands on her thighs, and looked up at her.

"Do you think I'm a bad person for wanting to leave Corey and the kid?" She asked.  
"No," he answered honestly. "I think Corey's a bad person for forcing you into this life. Be honest with me. What will happen to you if you stay?"  
"I'll kill myself," she said.  
"And that..." His eyes filled with tears. "That would break me more than I already am. And I'm already pretty fucking broken. So are you. We should be allowed to be happy too. We should be allowed to choose what we wanna do with our own lives."

She jumped on him without warning, demanding his lips in a heated kiss. Her hands moved under his tank top, pulling it upwards aggressively. He rolled them around, so she was on her back, pulled his tank top off, and moved his mouth to her ear.

"Easy, darling," he said. "Don't make me rush this. I'm gonna take such good care of you tonight."


	3. I'm leaving

Brooklyn couldn't remember the last time she had gotten a good night's sleep. She woke up on Dean's chest with his left arm under her, bent up to run his fingertips on her shoulder. She opened her eyes and noticed him scrolling on his phone with his free hand.

"Hey," she said sleepily. "What time is it?"  
"9.15," he answered. "I have to be at the arena at 11, but I'll stay here until the final minute with you if you want me to."  
"What are you doing?" She asked.  
"Looking at laser treatment for scars in Las Vegas. You said you hated that scar," he said.  
"I do," she said.  
"I think I found the right place for you, and it's close to where I live. Hint hint," he chuckled. "Here, take a look at the website."

He handed her his phone, and she pushed herself up to sit with her back against the wall. He sat up too, put his arm around her shoulders, and leaned his head down on top of her head while she looked at the website.

"Wow, thank you," she said. "This means more to me than you'll ever know."  
"I know," he said.

He leaned down and kissed her shoulder, moving up to kiss her cheek and her lips. Just a soft, short good morning kiss.

"It's true, isn't it?" She asked. "That you're leaving?"  
"Yeah, I'm not happy anymore," he answered.  
"What are you gonna do?" She asked.  
"I don't know. I've been thinking about maybe opening a wrestling school, but I'm not good with people, so I'm not sure. I actually found a place for it. Here, let me show you," he said.

He took his phone back and pulled up the sales ad.

"I don't know what it is about that place," he said. "It just looks..."  
"Perfect," she finished his sentence.  
"Yeah, it does," he grinned.  
"Dean, you gotta do this. You'll do great with teaching new talents. And not only teaching them how to wrestle. You're a fucking wizard when it comes to promos. You can help them with that too," she said.  
"Yeah, you think? Maybe I just need someone like you kicking my ass in the right direction," he said.  
"Call them!" She demanded. "Set up a meeting to see the place tomorrow. It won't hurt to look."

She pecked his lips, and jumped out of bed to get dressed.

"Ehm, darling, what are you doing?" He asked.  
"I'm going back to my room," she answered.  
"Yeah, right, makes sense," he tried to hide he was disappointed.  
"I'll see you really soon, Dean," she said.

She gave him a big smile, and walked out of his room.

"Fuck!" He threw a punch at the nearest pillow. "Fuck you, Corey!"

Corey seemed tired and worried when she finally walked into their room.

"Where were you?" He asked.  
"I was with Dean," she answered.  
"All night?" He asked.  
"Yeah, all night, Corey," she answered.

She grabbed her bag from the floor. It was still unopened after arriving yesterday. She found her phone on the small table where she had left it the night before. She had left it on purpose, making sure Corey wouldn't be able to reach out to her.

"What the hell, Brooklyn? I was worried out of my mind. I was..." He stopped mid sentence.

He watched her swing the bag over her shoulder, and grab her jacket from the floor.

"What are you doing?" He asked.  
"I'm leaving you," she answered.  
"What? Just like that? You're leaving me for that lunatic?" He shouted.  
"Yeah," she smiled. "I love him, Corey."  
"What about me?" He asked.  
"I haven't loved you in over a year," she answered.  
"What about Chiles?" He asked.  
"Who?" She looked confused for a second. "Right! I keep forgetting you named your kid that. Well, you wanted a fuck trophy, so he's yours."  
"I will fight you every step of the way for him!" He sneered.

She let out a roaring laughter at those words. Her eyes filled with tears from laughing that hard. She dried them, and kept her smile while shaking her head.

"You don't get it, Corey. I don't want him! I never did," she said. "You don't have to fight me. Just send the papers, and I'll sign him over to you right away. Just keep him the fuck out of my life for good."  
"You won't get any of my money," he said.  
"I don't need them. I still got my savings from when I wrestled," she said.  
"What? You promised to put them into a children's savings account for Chiles," he said.  
"I didn't promise shit! You told me to, but I chose not to," she said.  
"After everything I did to keep you away from him, I'm still losing you to him! It's not fair!" He shouted.  
"Fuck off!" She growled.

She walked over to the door and opened it.

"You're a bad mother!" He yelled.  
"Exactly!" She pointed at him. "And as far as I'm concerned, I'm not a mother at all. He doesn't exist."

She closed the door behind her and walked away. She didn't go far though. She went back to the floor Dean was on. He opened with a confused look. A look that quickly turned to a smile when he saw her standing there with her bag.

"You left him?" He asked.  
"Of course I did. I'm sure I told you," she said.  
"No, you didn't," he said.  
"I said that I would see you really soon. I thought you knew that meant a matter of minutes," she said.  
"Come here," he laughed and pulled her into his arms. "I feel so stupid. I thought you were gone."  
"Why would I do that?" She laughed too. "It's about time that we stop being so broken, and instead start being happy together. Like we were gonna do last year before Corey fucked us over."  
"Come here, darling," he said.

He tightened his arms around her, and kissed her passionately.

"He knows about us, by the way," she said.  
"Don't care," he said.  
"He'll probably cause a scene at work," she said.  
"I don't give a fuck. What are they gonna do? Fire me? I already gave them my notice," he said. "So how about a shower before I have to go to the arena?"

She made a purring sound that made him chuckle.

"Oh, before I forget. I called to set up a meeting to see that place tomorrow. I had just hung up when you knocked. You're going with me to see it, right?" He asked.  
"Fuck, yes!" She smiled widely.  
"Oh, and I take it you're without a place to live. Do we really wanna bother with the whole dating for months routine before moving you into my house?" He asked.  
"Nope!" She grinned.


	4. I'm finally free

She didn't go to the arena with Dean. She knew shit would fall down big time if Corey saw them together. It was one thing that he knew, and a whole other thing if he saw it with his own eyes. It was better to play it safe.

Instead Dean rented the hotel room for another night even though they didn't plan on staying the night. She just needed a place to stay to get everything under control while Dean went to work with Monday night RAW.

At first she contacted Dean's attorney. Dean had called ahead and put his attorney into the matter. Brooklyn called next to talk to him about everything in her life. She asked him how soon they could get papers done in order to sign over the kid to Corey. The attorney promised to have the papers ready for Tuesday.

Afterwards she called the clinic for laser treatment to set up an appointment. They didn't have time until the following week, but that was alright to her. She wasn't planning on ever leaving Vegas again once she got there. She could wait another week.

After everything was done, she went downstairs to get some dinner. Everyone working for WWE would be at the arena, so no one would see her. After a delicious pasta dish, she went back to the room to watch RAW. It was clear from Corey's commentary that he was angry this night. It worked fine with his heel persona, but he messed up when Dean was in the ring.

"What do you have against Dean?" Cole asked.  
"He's a fucking homewrecker!" Corey shouted. "He..."

His microphone cut off, and poor Cole was left to handle it on his own. She didn't blame Corey from lashing out, but she knew he would be fined heavily for that slip up. The F word wasn't allowed on live TV. After the show she went down to check out, and then she waited outside until Dean picked her up.

"Did you hear Corey?" She asked.  
"Someone played it to me afterwards," he laughed. "Vince was pissed off."  
"People will know. Corey will tell everyone, and I'll be called every name in the book. I'll be trashed completely on social medias," she said.  
"Do like me. Stay away from them," he said.  
"I have, actually," she said. "Ever since I left wrestling, I haven't been there. Since I knew you weren't there, there was no reason to. I kept hoping you'd call me one day."

He reached over, took her hand, and placed it against his lips.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know that he had trapped you. I couldn't wrap my head around how you had changed your mind," he said.  
"And now you know better," she said.  
"Now I know better," he said. "And you could have called me too."  
"I was ashamed, and I thought I had missed my window with you," she said.  
"Never," he chuckled. "Well, if that kid had come along, then I would have run away. But you, darling? No, never. I'm never letting you go."

Next day they went to his attorney first. The papers were ready, and she didn't even stop to think about it. She signed them with a smile.

"Great. I'll get them to Corey Graves' attorney right away," he shook her hand, and pointed at Dean. "You take care of this one. He's a handful."  
"I know," she laughed.

Next they went to see the place that Dean was thinking about buying and transform into a wrestling school.

"Wow," she looked around. "Dean, it's perfect."  
"It really is," he grinned. "Should I?"  
"Do it," she grinned back.  
"Only if you promise to be a trainer too," he said.  
"What? Are you serious?" She asked.  
"Dead serious, darling. We can train these dreamers together. And I know you miss wrestling one way or another," he said.  
"I don't miss WWE, but I miss being in a ring, doing... well, this. Yes, I'm in," she said.

He signed the papers just as fast as she had signed earlier at the attorney's.

"Lunch?" He asked.  
"I want spring rolls," she said.  
"That should be doable," he said.

They walked out to the car, and her phone started ringing. She sighed when she saw Corey's name on the screen.

"Corey," she answered.  
"What the fuck is up with these papers that just got e-mailed to my attorney?" He shouted.  
"We talked about this yesterday," she said.  
"But you weren't supposed to do it!" He shouted louder.  
"Tough shit, because I did. The kid is yours," she said.  
"What the hell is wrong with you?" He asked.  
"No, what the hell is wrong with you? You put that thing inside me! You forced me, you asshole! I should have sued your ass off for doing that to me! He's yours, Corey. I don't give a fuck about what's going on in your or his life from now on! Don't ever contact me again!" She shouted.

She hung up, mumbling something in an angry tone while doing something on her phone.

"Darling?" Dean asked.  
"There!" She finally looked up. "I blocked him. I'm finally free."  
"Come here, darling," he pulled her in for a kiss. "Do you still want spring rolls?"  
"Don't you dare try taking my spring rolls away from me!" She stared him down. "I don't wanna start this relationship on the problematic side."  
"You're so cute," he chuckled. "God, I love you, darling."

Soon after they had found a Thai place where she could get spring rolls while Dean was digging into a noodle dish.

"So what should I name the school?" He asked.  
"Something with Moxley. People will flock to it," she answered.  
"I like that," he said. "Hey, maybe we can even wrestle a bit together on the indie scenes at one point. We can be the Moxley's."  
"And when we get married, we're so changing both of our last names to Moxley," she said.  
"Is that your way of proposing to me, darling?" He laughed.  
"Would you say yes if I did?" She laughed back.  
"Come here," he said.

He grabbed her shirt, and pulled her close for a kiss. He moved his lips to her ear, kissing her earlobe before giving it a quick flick with his tongue.

"I would say yes," he said.  
"Then I might ask you one day," she said.  
"Tease!" He chuckled.  
"You love it," she smirked.


End file.
